German unemployment rose to 4.31 million in December, the highest December total since 1997, Die Welt newspaper said on Saturday, citing what it said were preliminary estimates of the Federal Labour Office.
The estimate would imply a rise of around 125,000 from November's unadjusted figure of 4.184 million, or 10 percent of the working population of Europe's largest economy.
The Federal Labour Office will release December unemployment figures on Thursday. Die Welt regularly reports provisional estimates, which in the past have deviated substantially from the official data.
The jobless total typically rises during winter months as temporary jobs disappear in areas like agriculture and construction.
According to a Reuters poll, the headline figure was expected to rise to 4.3 million in December.
The more closely watched seasonally adjusted jobless total was expected to fall by 9,500, according to the poll of economists. Estimates ranged from a fall of 1,000 to a drop of 20,000.
The number of jobless people adjusted for seasonal factors fell 18,000 in November to 4.363 million, the third consecutive monthly decline, but the economy remained too weak to create new jobs.
Both the Labour Office and the government have attributed the declines to reforms aimed at pressuring unemployed people to take part-time jobs or training places or to become self-employed.
Economists do not expect a fundamental turnaround in the labour market until the second half of 2004 when the hesitant recovery gathers steam.
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